Afghan troops in the lead ahead of 2014 - or are they?

Aug. 2, 2013
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Dick Young helps an Afghan soldier load cases of water into his truck during a mission in the sweltering Afghan summer. The Afghan troops did not bring enough of their own water to last the 30-hour mission. / Carmen Gentile for USA TODAY

A second platoon of soldiers moves off to flank the enemy. When they arrive, they find the gunmen have fled.

Technically, this is an Afghan-led mission. The U.S. forces jumped into the fight only because the Afghans could not handle it on their own, and they quickly resumed the role of rear-guard assistants after chasing off the enemy.

Moments after the battle, the U.S. troops toss cases of water into the trucks of the Afghans, who failed to bring enough for what turned into a 30-hour mission.

In June, Afghan forces officially took over full security responsibilities from the international coalition for the first time since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion that drove from power the Taliban, the al-Qaeda-aligned terror group.

On paper, that means the 350,000-strong Afghan National Army built from nothing by the coalition is taking the lead on most missions ahead of an announced withdrawal of nearly all coalition combat forces in 2014.

However, as the fighting in Nangarhar shows, the Afghans cannot prevail everywhere without American firepower and know-how at the ready. Afghanistan's military will require "substantial" additional training and foreign financial aid after the American and NATO combat mission ends, the Pentagon told Congress in its semiannual report Tuesday.

As President Obama considers whether to keep some troops in Afghanistan beyond the withdrawal or remove them all as he did in Iraq, some experts warn that he risks snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

"If all the troops come home, it could be disastrous," says Ahmed Majidyar, an Afghanistan expert with the American Enterprise Institute. "The Afghan forces won't be able to defend against the Taliban in some remote areas, especially in the south and east," where the Taliban and militant groups have the greatest influence in Afghanistan.

TURNING OVER THE REINS

This summer-fall fighting season marks the final stage of the transition from U.S.- to Afghan-led security operations in Afghanistan. U.S. soldiers will spend the time mentoring Afghan soldiers and commanders on counterterrorism techniques and combat against an irregular force.

With U.S. soldiers at their side, the Afghans are supposed to be leading every conventional military operation. Special operations units such as the Green Berets and Navy SEALs are still allowed to conduct their own missions, but they are now to be joined by Afghan soldiers in all cases.

The U.S.-led coalition of troops here known as the International Security Assistance Force says that the Afghans have shown numerous signs of improving their ability to conduct small operations.

However, the Afghan National Security Forces are handicapped by the government's failure to keep its soldiers supplied properly with necessities like ammunition, fuel for vehicles and food, despite massive foreign aid from the USA and other nations.

Some Afghan commanders in Achin say they can fight on their own but, because of the lack of support from Kabul, remain dependent on the U.S. military for logistical help.

"This is a good opportunity for us to work with locals and improve our relationships there," Ahmad said.

He said it was also an ideal opportunity to show both Afghan locals and militants like the Taliban that ANSF isn't merely a smoke screen for the will of U.S. and NATO forces.

The objective was to clear this rural district in Nangarhar of militants and meet with local leaders in hopes of laying the groundwork for future cooperation. After they head out, for much of the day the American troops are in the rear.

That is until a rocket lands and explodes and a firefight erupts. The attack opens a quick debate among the young Afghan commanders on their course of action.

One Afghan captain wants American forces to move in on a compound where the rockets were fired. But the Americans feel they should hold off and let the Afghans take charge.

"Today is the day we stop doing everything for them," U.S. Capt. Derek Zotto says. "We're not putting our soldiers at risk."

The American troops hope to sit and wait in the rear, but when the Afghan soldiers decline to approach the compound from which the attackers were holed up, they spring into action.

SHORT ON AIR POWER

Another area in which Afghans still rely on U.S. troops is air support, a crucial advantage when trying to pinpoint the location of enemies who can blend into the local populace moments after a firefight. An overhead view gives forces on the ground another perspective for finding those that attack, then flee.

The Obama administration announced recently that it will spend almost $600 million on Russian helicopters for the fledgling Afghan air force. The choice of Russian models was made due to Afghan's familiarity with the Soviet-era aircraft.

Even so, concerns persist that the Afghans will not be able to maintain the aircraft in the long term, ultimately rendering them useless.

Afghanistan's air force is nearly non-existent at the moment, Majidyar notes.

"When the Soviet forces left Afghanistan (more than 20 years ago), their air force was better trained and better equipped than it is right now," he said.

Though the so-called "zero option," in which no American troops in Afghanistan remain after next year, seems unlikely, the mere suggestion of a complete withdrawal has spawned increased concern, experts say.

Seth Jones, associate director, International Security and Defense Policy Center at the RAND Corp., say that Afghan forces have "done OK in holding key population areas" like the capital of Kabul, where in recent months bombing attacks by militant groups have left several people dead and dozens of others injured.

But in rural Afghanistan, which represents the vast majority of the country, Afghan forces must operate in difficult, remote terrain and along a porous border that is easy transit for militants coming from Pakistan into southern and eastern Afghanistan.

"The challenge is going to be in key rural areas where they (Afghan forces) just don't have the numbers," he says. If the Taliban and militants from other groups return to those areas, "some territories would be lost."